The myth is not without it's merit, Flipkart is perhaps the first one which did it at massive scale and showed how it can reduce the friction when converting a website visitor to a paying customer.
Further read on COD http://www.businesstoday.in/magazine/cover-story/cash-on-del...
Also, seems like mail order for most part still had to depend upon credit cards. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_not_present_transaction
The point that I was highlighting is Flipkart showed the way as to how this forgotten system (COD) can be leveraged in the days of internet to acquire new customers.
The relevant question here is - If Amazon India came before Flipkart, would they have thought of putting this system in place? Maybe, Maybe not.
But one can hazard at least this much guess that looking at the kind of customer traction Flipkart was getting due to COD system, Amazon India's product managers perhaps had to write far lesser emails to Seattle for incorporating that in Amazon.in.
The idea is not novel, it's been conceived off several times in human history as suggested in this thread alone. So flipkart has no claim to special talent, or high barriers in conceiving of the idea.
Since Amazon also wants to be a market place enabler, and builder of market places themselves, it's quite likely they would see this model being played out in other parts of the world and try it out.
Yes, the number of emails required to sell the idea would be lower with an Indian paragon to point to.
http://www.businessinsider.com/this-is-the-difference-betwee...